Hyderabad: A teenager was burnt to death in a fire at RK Engineering Works in North Kamalanagar, Kushaiguda, on Friday morning. The victim was trapped inside the workshop when fire broke out.
A short circuit is suspected to have sparked the fire. The presence of Zirconium, a highly inflammable metal, in the shop helped the fire spread.
The victim, 15-year-old Srinu, belonged to East Godavari of Andhra Pradesh. He quit his education in Class VII and came to the city in search of a job.
According to the police, at around 10 am, Srinu, Ramakrishna, the owner, and two other women were working inside the workshop when a fire broke out. Srinu was trapped inside.
“The fire spread within seconds. Srinu could not come out because of the thick smoke,” said S. Raghu Babu, investigating officer, Kushaiguda police station. Mr Ramakrishna attempted to rescue Srinu but failed to do so. He received 50 per cent burns and was rushed to hospital. Police said a case will be registered against him.
“There was lots of scrap material in the workshop. Apart from which Zirconium, a metal known to be highly inflammable, was also present. A spark is enough to ignite it. It helped in spreading the fire even more quickly,” said D. Pratap, inspector of police, Kushaiguda.
Meanwhile, the locals alerted the police who reached the spot. A fire tender came to the scene and put out the fire within half-an-hour.
A spot post mortem was conducted on Srinu’s body as it could not be shifted to the hospital. Ramakrishna who sustained about 50 per cent burns was rushed to the Gandhi Hospital and is being treated.
Police said a case will be registered against Ramakrishna under section 304A (causing death by negligence) of the IPC and investigated.
